New York City: Per Se (December 2009)

ONE OF THE BEST MEALS EVER!  We recommend vegetable-based tasting menu, priced at about $275 p/p (includes gratiuity and nonalcoholic beveverage), as well as the 9-course lunch or dinner also priced at $275 p/p (includes gratiuity and nonalcoholic beveverage). Chances are you'll only visit Thomas Keller's lauded
establishment to celebrate a once-in-a-lifetime occasion, say, an engagement or an organ transplant! This restaurant has held 3 Michelin stars since it opened. Per Se is a New American and French restaurant located on the fourth floor of the Time Warner Center at 10 Columbus Circle (at West 60th Street and Broadway). In
2011, it was called the best restaurant in New York City by the New York Times. The chef is Eli Kaimeh. Per Se is currently the third most expensive restaurant in the world after Sublimotion and Urasawa with an average guest spending approximately $851. The owner of Per Se is Thomas Keller, who is also involved in the
restaurants French Laundry and Ad Hoc in Napa Valley; Bouchon in Napa Valley, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles; Bouchon Bakery in Napa Valley; and the Time Warner Center and Rockefeller Center in New York. Per Se opened in February 2004. Keller chose restaurant/hotel designer Adam Tihany to draw together subtle
references to The French Laundry and elements from both his and Keller's pasts; for example, the decorative blue door to the right of the main entrance is modeled after the blue door at The French Laundry.The restaurant features a salon, bar, and wine cellar. Like Keller's previous project, The French Laundry, Per Se
features two daily prix fixe menus, one of which is vegetarian. Menus frequently include up-charges for luxury ingredients such as foie gras and truffles. The private room can accommodate approximately 10 people, while the west room can accommodate 62 – the same number of seats as the French Laundry.